Monday, May 05, 2008

We love taco trucks but let's be clear about the issue

Tacos Arizas truck in Echo Park, at Sunset and Logan

Don't get us wrong. EatingLA loves tacos and taco trucks and thinks there's room for everyone to survive. But I have a feeling that the vast majority of people who have signed the petition at Saveourtacotrucks don't understand that the ordinance applies only to unincorporated areas of Los Angeles. Jennifer Steinhauer got in right in the New York Times story and so did Time magazine, but some of the local articles and TV reports have been much more vague about the scope of the law.This new law, which would impose a $1000 fine if trucks don't move every hour, is mainly targeted at East L.A. Not Boyle Heights, which is in the city of L.A., not Echo Park, where hipsters and taco trucks collide, or Highland Park, or West L.A., or other areas within city jurisdiction. I believe trucks operating in city neighborhoods are still subject to the $60 fine for not moving every hour, which many choose to pay as the cost of doing business. Let me know if that's not the case.

I never said that we shouldn't care, just that we should be aware of what the law is, which is very unclear in some places. For the record, I am against the spirit of the law. And you are right, Marina del Rey is unincorporated. A few other areas that could be affected are Altadena, Sunland, Montrose and La Crescenta.

As someone else said in another article on the subject, even though the law is only affecting unincorporated LA, if the law is passed, it could make it easier for other cities to do the same thing. So, stopping it now can save it from spreading later.

In the interest of clarifying data, Sunland IS incorporated City of LA, as evidenced by our LAPL branch and Council Member Distric 2 Field Office. For those interested, a map of the incorporated areas designated by neighborhood name can be found at http://www.laalmanac.com/LA/lamap2.htm